Rat Fights
by Lynn Loring
Summary: Rachel and Trent resolve their conflicting feelings about the rat fights. All characters and world building belong to Kim Harrison.


"I'm sorry, but that's the only way I'll truly be able to put the Rat Fights behind me. You have to become a mink!" I told my boyfriend. He scowled, looking like he'd swallowed slugs.

"Really, Rachel! I thought the past was behind us. It's been, what, three years? I told you you weren't in any danger. Have I ever lied to you? Other than once about summer camp, in all the years we've known each other? . . ! " He said, angrily.

I'd been bugging him to let me turn him into a mink for the last week, ever since we'd seen a documentary on minks in the wild. And I knew he was tired of me harassing him, but I just couldn't help myself.

"Well, can you just do it because it will make me feel better about it? It was so awful being in a cage and helpless." I told him in my best pouty voice, putting my arms around him, and caressing his slightly pointy ears. He never said no when I caressed his ears. Ears were an extreme erogenous zone for elves, especially the pointy top. And my boyfriend was an elf. Actually, he was the leader of all the elves on the North American continent. I really had no feelings of rancor from the mink incident. I just wanted to see if I could get him to agree to my request.

He closed his eyes for a second, as if to gain patience, and then opened his eyes looking resigned. I knew I had him. "Do you want me to fight in the Rat Fights on Friday?"

"God no!" I said appalled. I would never put him in any danger, ever. At least not on purpose. I had acted as his security for two years before we started dating, and I still did on occasion. It was second nature for me to protect him, even if I wasn't being paid for it anymore.

And then he smiled. He knew he had me now. "Well, how can I prove my contrition if I don't at least enter one fight? It really wouldn't be right. Of course, you'll have to become a mink to protect me, too."

"Not really what I had in mind." I said, defeated, as I turned around to pour myself some coffee.

"Well, maybe we can just both become minks and play together," he said in a low, silky voice, as he moved up behind me and put his arms around me from the back, kissing my neck as he leaned into me. His elf smell of cinnamon and wine enveloped me. Elves were able to use their scent to draw people to them, and even though I had smelled him hundreds, maybe thousands of times, it still worked on me. He had the added allure of a melodious, silky voice that he used to convince people to do whatever he wanted. And that usually worked on me, too. It wasn't fair, he had so much more to work with.

"Never mind, it doesn't matter. I forgive you, I mean I forgave you, years ago. I was just teasing you." I grumped, knowing he had won this argument.

In the old days, before we started dating six months earlier, he and I had argued almost incessantly over just about everything. I have to admit I used to love antagonizing him to get his back up. He had been so reserved and stuffy that getting any show of emotion was incredibly hard, and really fun. I was the only person that seemed to be able to get to him. Of course, looking back, I know we both had strong feelings for each other that we wouldn't admit, and so we showed them by fighting like grade schoolers. We still had those same strong feelings, but now we were using them for much pleasanter diversions.

"I'm starting to think it might be a lot of fun," he said again, not wanting to let me off the hook. He was still leaning against me, but now he was nibbling on my earlobe.

There was really only one thing I could do to end his teasing. I'd have to call his bluff.

"OK, you win. Next Friday's fights? I'll start working on the charm today." I told him, snarkily.

He didn't look quite so smug now. "Well, I might have a conflict for next Friday, I already have a meeting set up at Lucy and Ray's new play school. It's a really long waiting list to get spots, so I don't think we should miss it."

"Ok, next week will work, too."

The day of the Fights came around quickly. I had the charm ready, and he'd agreed to take it like a man. He only had to drink a small vial of concoction, and he did it quickly, without a whimper. Five minutes later, he was a mink.

"Do I need to drug you to get you into the cage, like you did me?" I cattily asked him, knowing he could understand me perfectly. He squeaked back at me, and scurried into the cat carrier without a backward glance. This is going to be fun, I thought to myself. I surprised him then by throwing a sheet over the carrier, so he would have no idea where he was going. He squeaked excitedly, or angrily. I wasn't sure, it was all squeaks to me.

"Don't worry, darling, " I said to him as I put him into my car in the passenger seat. "You aren't going to be in any danger."

He squeaked non stop for the next several minutes, and then there was silence in the cage. That worried me a little, so I looked under the sheet. He was fine, just quietly looking at me with his big mink eyes.

I drove out of his compound, and then drove around a bit, ending up back on his property on a dirt road. We bumped along the road until I came to a spot next to a lake that was already set up with a blanket and two baskets for a picnic. I was not planning to take him to a rat fight. It was no where I'd go to again. Ever. But I wasn't about to miss out on the opportunity to tease him.

I took the carrier out of the car, and carried it over to the blanket. He knew by now we were not at the Rat fights, the smell was too clean. I set him down, and then settled myself laying sideways to the carrier on the blanket. I pulled out a set of clothes for him, as I knew when he transformed back he'd be naked. I didn't mind that, but I didn't want to insult his dignity any more than I already had. And I wasn't quite sure how he was going to react when he transformed back.

I pulled off the sheet slowly and then opened the carrier door. He was laying on the bottom of the carrier, not moving. I shook it a little to get him moving. There was no response. I stared in at him. He still didn't move. I knew this was probably some trick, but I was still worried. The man might be reacting badly to the charm. He was an elf and even though I had researched the charm to make sure it was safe for him, I started to worry that I might have done something wrong.

I warily put my hand into the carrier to pull him out. I didn't want him to bite me if he was faking. But he still didn't move.

I started to worry. "Trent, Trent, are you ok? Wake up please!" I gently caressed his furry face.

There was still no movement. I decided to change him back. I threw salt water on him to dissolve the charm, after moving him to the center of the blanket. He transformed back, and it did look painful. I was starting to feel guilty and worried.

After the transformation was done, I started shaking him. He still didn't move. Tears started rolling down my checks and I pulled out my cell phone to call 911.

Before I could punch in the first number, he was on me so fast I couldn't even cry out before his mouth was on mine stifling my scream. I was so happy that he was ok, that I missed the wicked gleam in his eyes.

"Now you are at my mercy, witch!" He said as he pushed me down on the blanket and held me in place with his body. His wet, gorgeous, naked body. Did I mention that he was drop dead gorgeous with a body that could make a dead woman sit up and drool?

"OK, elf, you got me!" I said, making a token effort to push him off me.

"I haven't yet," he said, pinning my arms to the ground. "But I'm going to, over and over until you forget those damn Rat fights ever happened!"

Oh well, I thought. Now who won?


End file.
